Download here - FlightSaver

II. GPS position/nav data
The FlightSaver records 3-D position information
provided by your GPS output port. A compressed file
format is used so that even several thousand hours of
GPS data won’t stress the limits of the flash data card.
Once you have this long-term record you will be
amazed at the utility of the data when coupled with the
mapping software supplied with the FlightSaver. A few
examples are:
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See exactly what went awry on that ILS attempt
Return to that unmarked dirt strip you visited
several years ago
Prove to the FAA that you were actually above the
class B airspace that the controller insisted you
violated
Recreate those forgotten pilot logbook entries
Review 3D plots of your competition acro
sequences to hone your flying precision and box
positioning skills even when you can’t find an
observer qualified to critique your sequence.
Identify the most efficient IFR and VFR routes and
altitudes for your most common destinations.
In addition to the recording functions you will come to
appreciate the FlightSaver’s GPS display functions. For
example, you can elect to display ground speed on the
main display page – continuously, or on a rotating
basis with other functions. More importantly, the
FlightSaver enables its CDI display (course deviation
indicator) whenever a GPS destination has been
selected. Although your GPS can display a digital CDI,
typically the CDI resolution is too coarse to easily
gauge its movement. The FlightSaver’s CDI’s
resolution however, is as good as a traditional analog
display. Another compelling advantage is that the
FlightSaver allows you to view the CDI continuously,
freeing up the GPS display for other equally important
navigation data – another example of reducing
extraneous button pushing and knob fiddling. You
could accomplish the same thing by adding a
conventional analog indicator, but typically this will
cost as much as the FlightSaver and use the same panel
space for a small fraction of the utility. The FlightSaver
also simultaneously displays a CCI (course correction
indicator) - another graphical course indication that
provides essential information not given by the
conventional analog CDI. (See the side bar “ CCI – a
new way to fly”).
CCI – a new way to fly
FlightSaver’s CCI display appears directly below
the CDI and shows you which way and how
much you should turn to fly direct to the selected
destination. Each thin arrow indicates a turn of
2° and each thick arrow indicates a turn of 10°.
When flying VFR, flying direct to your destination
is usually what you want, so following the CCI is
the easiest way of navigating. Other methods
require you to integrate information from more
than one instrument or display. Note that this is
different than homing – accomplished by merely
pointing the nose directly at the destination.
Homing also gets you there but via an inefficient
curved path because it doesn’t account for the
effect of wind. The CCI however accounts for
the wind without you even having to know what
it is. Flying to keep the CCI zeroed will yield a
straight path to the destination even as the
winds are changing. Although the CCI is an
angular measure, do not confuse it with the VOR
CDI, which is also shown in degrees. The VOR
shows you how many degrees you are from the
selected course, but it does not integrate
knowledge of the aircraft’s course and so by
itself it can’t tell you which way to turn.
What about when you are flying IFR? Flying to
the destination is generally not enough. One
must fly to the destination via a prescribed
course. To do that, one must use the CDI along
with the course interception and tracking skills
so painfully acquired during your instrument
training. However even for this task, you will find
the CCI very useful because it tells you which
way and how fast the CDI is going to move. If
the CCI is pointing to the left, that means the
CDI will be moving to the left. If you are trying to
get back to the selected course you should be
happy only when the CCI and CDI are pointing
in opposite directions. As an example, suppose
the CDI has drifted to the left. To make a 30° cut
back to the course, steer so the CCI shows
three thick arrows to the right.
The CCI data (sometimes called track angle
error) comes from your GPS and is computed as
the difference between the bearing to the
waypoint and the course over the ground. So,
yes, it turns out you’ve had this information all
along. However only with the FlightSaver can
you display it in way that is easy to interpret (i.e.
in graphical form right next to the CDI).
If you have an HSI you probably depend on it for
course guidance. Even so, you will find the CCI
a useful adjunct and an important backup
system. (Remember that your HSI depends on
failure-prone mechanical parts such as the gyro
and compass slaving system and some on the
notoriously unreliable vacuum pump as well.)